I wrote recently about a Northamptonshire based client of mine whose management style is that of Management By Walking Around – MBWA. This is part two of the blog and I’m sharing four more techniques of MBWA with you.
A reminder of the background to the theory:
Management consultants Tom Peters and Robert H Waterman used the term Management By Walking Around in their 1982 book In Search of Excellence: lessons from America’s best-run companies.
The concept is of an unstructured management style, where the manager wanders around the workplace to check with employees how the work is going, connects with customers, watches how the equipment is working or performs general checks.
The purpose of MBWA is to listen, question, observe and keep your finger on the pulse of the organisation.
My coaching client (pictured) is Lee Bosley, Underwoods Town & County, Northampton. Lee uses MBWA.
Lee is the Lettings Director of Underwoods Town & County, a Northamptonshire based business focused on high end property sales and rental. Lee and his team sit in the front office and their job is a varied, stimulating, interesting and reactive one – Lee’s staff never know when a prospective or existing customer may walk in, or what the person’s query may be.
Over his eight years working at Underwoods, Lee has developed – without the theory – his management style of Management By Walking Around.
Here are some of Lee’s MBWA practices:
Do it as often as you can
I ran a course recently where an attendee told me he’d only seen his manager twice in the last month! How remote can you be?
MBWA is about regular contact, and blocking proactive time in the diary with people. It’s too easy to focus on your own tasks, however if we are spending time with our staff they will look after our business for us.
Lee starts every day with a brief “team huddle” where the team shares ideas, updates and knowledge. “Our industry is hugely complex and that time to share responses to client situations is so valuable.” (Lee). There is never a day the same in the Underwoods Lettings department, as Lee may have 10 viewings one week and 30 the next.
Lee diarises his office time to ensure he is focused on his team “I look at my emails remotely so that the moment I come into the office I am focused on my team…I want to stay in touch with their work.”
Go by yourself
“I’m confident now to deliver both the good and bad news to my people.” Lee says “When I was less experienced, I used to hide behind statements such as ‘it’s been decided’ whereas now I say ‘I have decided’. It has enabled me to be able to discuss things on a one to one basis with all my staff.”
MBWA is more effective and meaningful when you visit employees on a one to one basis, and alone.
Catch them doing it right
This is positive reinforcement from behavioural psychology. Behaviour breeds behaviour, so if you want people to do the right things, you need to step in and recognise this at the time. Lee does this in everyday practice – “When I hear one of my staff on the phone and they deal with a complex issue or an upset client and use the right tone or the right words, I tell them as soon as they’ve come off the phone. It works as a confidence booster for them and for me and reinforces that my coaching is working!”.
Most of our staff should be getting it right most of the time – otherwise they shouldn’t be in post! So get into the habit of reinforcing the behaviour you wish to see. It’s a good habit.
Share your dreams with them
“All our dreams can come true – if we have the courage to pursue them.” (Walt Disney)
Through team meetings and timely feedback, Lee reminds the staff of living the values of Underwoods; of a team of Dedicated Property Professionals.
“My team goal is to be the Letting Agent of choice to professional landlords in Northamptonshire and to do this, all of us must live the values every day.”.
Question: If your people don’t know where they are heading, how will they know when they’ve got there?
Question: If your staff don’t know what standards they need to achieve, how can they stretch themselves to excel?
Lee sums this up: “I am transparent about the standards I expect and my vision for how we will be the number one team.”.
In my final blog on MBWA I will introduce three further techniques of MBWA however my summary is that I often work with managers who are remote and distant from what their staff do on a daily basis. It can make developing staff a challenge for both parties. Adopting the MBWA approach means “I can share my vision…of a fully trained team of dedicated property professionals.” (Lee Bosley).
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